Teaching Philosophy

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Teaching Philosophy

Cicero said, "What noble employment is more valuable to the state than that of the man who instructs the rising generation?" He was correct in saying this because the young people of today will become the world leaders of tomorrow. The educators that instruct these children are important to this society because they will help shape the lives of these young people.

When deciding upon a philosophy of education, I was torn between two: Progressivism and Essentialism. The idea of educating students with real-world experiences is one reason I can identify with Progressivism. On the other hand, the "back-to-basics" approach to teaching is a reason I believe in Essentialism. It is my belief that combining the two philosophies will help students learn to become more creative. This is because I feel that they need to know the basics as well as how to apply them in the real world.

I am working toward a degree in Elementary Education because I want to be one of the first educators in a child’s life. By teaching the younger children I can help them grasp the basics. It is my belief that without the basic understanding of reading and writing students would be lost in the education process as well as the world.

My plans of educating will begin with the basics, but then as the children start to grasp these ideas, I want to help them use their knowledge in different ways. In this society, people have to be able to think on their feet. They have to be able to take a situation and look at it from many different angles to decide how to change or fix it. By teaching children to learn in different ways, they will have the opportunity to obtain these skills.

It is my belief that all children have...

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...n behave properly. I do not want the children to form the idea that they can receive more attention by misbehaving. I want them to strive to be attentive, well-behaved children. This behavior will be encouraged by praising the children when they are being good, rather than constantly calling attention away from the lesson to instruct a student to behave.

In conclusion, I would like to summarize the main ideas of my philosophy. The first idea is my desire to incorporate my two philosophies into one curriculum. The second being the idea of an environment where children will learn, and be able to apply what they have learned in their lives. The third being my hope that I will be able to reach all of my students on a level in which they can learn. Lastly, I want my students to understand that they will be recognized for doing what is right instead of doing wrong.

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